In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic caused a mandatory shift from in-person instruction to online learning for many young children. Teachers needed to adjust to virtual teaching, children were isolated from their peers, and parents played a bigger role in learning during the pandemic. In 2021, the shift back to in-person learning occurred. Research has…

Early childhood teachers play a critical role in the kindergarten readiness of preschool age children. Yet, they often receive little and insufficient training in the use of evidence-based practices that can increase academic success and prevent undesired behaviors. As a result, preschool teachers tend to use more exclusionary practices when…

In response to developing technology standards and innovative technology applications, it is important to measure the knowledge of education standards and practice of teachers. This study includes 226 prekindergarten to fifth grade Latine teachers employed in a Latine-serving school district in a United States/Mexico border community. Survey data…

Despite many calls, there is little research addressing teachers' knowledge of reading assessments and how they utilize assessments for reading instruction. Therefore, the current research developed and validated a reliable measure of teachers' perceptions and knowledge of reading assessments, called the "Perceptions and Knowledge of…

We explore the classification accuracy of a parent and teacher report measure, the Inventory to Assess Language Knowledge (ITALK), to screen for developmental language disorder (DLD) in bilingual children. Participants were 120 Spanish-English bilingual children with typical development (TD) and 19 bilingual children with DLD, ranging in age from…

This study explores the experiences of current Pre-K through 12 teachers in South Texas school districts and their immediate need to transition from a traditional classroom setting to virtual instruction as a result of the worldwide health crisis response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Using naturalistic inquiry, this qualitative study transcribed and…

The purpose of this embedded-descriptive single-case study was to provide insight into one prekindergarten school's efforts to build teacher capacity in foundational skills. An embedded-descriptive single-case study was a suitable design for the study because the researcher could not manipulate the school's efforts; the setting was contemporary…

This article, a qualitative case study of two early childhood teachers, examines the ways the teachers provide young English learners (ELs) with "emotional scaffolding" -- prioritizing and mobilizing certain emotions in order to enhance learners' engagement and comprehension of content areas. The data analysis of participant observations…

Kindergarten in the United States has fundamentally changed. It is the new first grade where children are taught increased academic content and experience more standardized testing. There is much debate among education stakeholders about these changes, but such discussions are often siloed-- making it difficult to know whether these changes…

It can be a struggle for early childhood teachers to create hands-on, engaging lessons about animals. This is especially true of units that require exposure to a wide range of animals from a variety of habitats. The authors' describe how they shook up their traditional animal unit by creating a Kindergarten zoo! Herein they summarize their…

Instructional coaching is becoming common in early childhood programs to provide individualized, job-embedded professional development. Yet relatively few studies have tried to "unpack" the coaching process and delineate the specific features of coaching that contribute to teacher change. In this article, we describe an evidence-based…

Student learning objectives (SLOs) have become an increasingly popular tool for teacher evaluations as an alternative to Value-added Models (VAMs). However, the use of SLOs faces two major challenges. First, the target setting is mostly subjective and arbitrary. Second, there is little evidence on the reliability and validity of the tool. In this…

Research Findings: A social validity measure was used to examine 56 bilingual preschool teachers' perceptions and acceptability of an interactive shared book reading vocabulary intervention implemented in English with Spanish-speaking preschool children (N = 334) in a dual language program model. Social validity outcomes indicated that bilingual…

The article explores the intersection of equity goals and language ideologies within a dual language bilingual education (DLBE) language policy context. We present two DLBE teachers, Karina and Marisol, and explore their language ideologies and professional conviction towards equitable learning opportunities for their students. We investigate how…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of an early numeracy intervention delivered by kindergarten teachers to students identified as having mathematics difficulties. A multigroup growth-modeling-with-random-assignment-to-intervention-condition design was employed. Thirty-two teachers were randomly assigned to the treatment or…